


Obon

by Isabeau_Gower



Category: Saiyuki
Genre: Holidays, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-09-23
Updated: 2006-09-23
Packaged: 2017-10-19 08:18:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,288
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/198827
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Isabeau_Gower/pseuds/Isabeau_Gower
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There are holidays that are especially important to people, but when you are going west to save the world, can you really afford to take the time?  Goku thinks some things are just too important and sets out to help his family find the peace that they need.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Obon

Obon  
Isabeau Gower

Rating: PG-13  
Disclaimer: Saiyuki is the property of Kazuya Minekura and I derive no profit from this story.

 

Goku rolled over and felt some small relief from the heat as he separated from Sanzo’s sticky body. It was another hot night and even in the hours just before dawn, it never seemed to really cool down.

He’d awoken only a few minutes earlier when Sanzo had spoken in his sleep again. The single word was barely more than a whisper, but Sanzo’s mouth was close to Goku’s ear as they lay with their bodies still entangled and he had heard it clearly.

“Koumyou.”

Goku wasn’t jealous. He knew that it wasn’t their recent tumble in the sheets that had caused Sanzo to think about Koumyou at this moment. It was pain. When their relationship had first progressed to a physical one, Goku had been disturbed to realize that Sanzo occasionally whispered the name of his dead master in his sleep. After two years together though, Goku now knew that there were only a few triggers to Sanzo’s sleeping mind that generated the response: the rain, and Obon.

It was the horrible summer heat that was doing this to Sanzo. There was nothing Goku could do about the heat, but maybe there was something that he could do to sate the need they all felt during Obon season.

It wasn’t as though they could go home like normal people did. They were on the road, on a mission from the Sanbutsushin, and besides, they didn’t really have ‘homes’ did they? The temple was the nearest thing to a home that he and Sanzo had and the nearest thing to a family was the two men sleeping together in the next room. His new family had lost their old ones and Obon always brought that back to all of them.

They would be on the road for the next seven days since there were no convenient towns coming up that were on their scheduled path. An idea formed in Goku’s head and he began to refine it and plan for what he would need. Finding a small scrap of paper and a pen that Sanzo had left on the table, Goku set out to make himself a shopping list in the dim light of the moon.

Once he’d finished, he folded up the note, tucked it carefully in the pocket of his backpack, and crawled back into bed with his lover. Slowly curling back around Sanzo’s still body, Goku ran gentle fingers through blond hair before returning to sleep.

 

It would be three more days before Goku would get the chance he’d been waiting for. Nearing sunset, Hakkai drove the jeep into a valley where Goku could see a small lake and several rock outcroppings. The dim, rosy light cast fiery reflections on the face of the water and made the large grey boulders look faintly purple.

Fingers tightening on the canvas bag he kept at his feet, Goku leaned forward and asked, “Hey, Sanzo, Hakkai, would it be okay if we camped over by the lake tonight? It might be kinda nice to cool off in the water.”

“That sounds like a nice idea, Goku. What do you think, Sanzo?” Hakkai was feeling sticky and dirty from the heat and the road dust and would welcome a chance to wash both himself and a little laundry.

Sanzo was torn between wanting to hurry up and get west and wanting to get out of robes that could definitely use a wash. “Fine,” he huffed. Being secretly pleased at the monkey’s idea and admitting it out loud were two entirely different things.

Gojyo sat back in his seat and smiled as images of a wet Hakkai raced through his head. With the kappa distracted and the other two men facing forward, there was no one to notice the smile that lit up Goku’s face at having gotten his way.

Hakkai pulled the jeep to a stop some distance off the road and a short walk away from the lake. He found a comfortable location with level ground and soft grass underfoot and far enough away from trees for their cooking fire.

Once the jeep was unloaded and their camp was ready, Hakkai started to gather the laundry and head for the lake. It was dark by now, but the moon was full and with a lantern or two, there would still be sufficient light to wash at least some of the clothing. Goku quickly offered to help and used the cover of dark and the bundle of clothes to hide the bag he carried with him.

At the lake, Goku looked around trying to find the best area to fit what he had planned. A short distance from where Hakkai had walked to the water’s edge stood a grouping of boulders that looked perfect. Moving quickly, Goku ran over to the rocks and deposited his bag on the far side before returning to help Hakkai.

By the time the pair arrived back at their camp, Gojyo had started a fire and had strung a small line between two nearby trees. It wasn’t large enough for all of the laundry, but the rest they managed to spread over a few bushes.

Hakkai pulled food and pots from their supplies and began going through the motions of making their evening meal. After fetching some water for coffee, Gojyo settled at his side and the pair fell into easy conversation. Sanzo announced his intention to grab a bath in the lake before dinner and moved away from the camp with a cigarette between his lips.

As it turned out, Goku would have a long wait for his chance. Hakkai and Gojyo went to the lake after dinner to ‘take care of the dishes’ and didn’t return for over an hour. Goku put off Sanzo by saying he wanted to go for a quick swim and clean up before turning in and eventually the priest gave up and went to sleep.

As Goku stared into the fire and reviewed his plan in his head, he realized that he’d forgotten something very important. The group never bothered buying matches for camping when they had Hakuryu to start their cooking fires and half of the party were smokers. How was he going to light the candles? Spotting Sanzo’s lighter, Goku managed to palm it just as Hakkai and Gojyo returned looking very damp and happy.

Free to put his plan into action, Goku grabbed a towel and ran for the lake’s edge. If he waited too long, Hakkai and Gojyo would be asleep and Sanzo would be too far into his slumber to want to get up. Not bothering to take his turn in the water, he returned to the group as soon as everything was ready.

“Umm, guys? Could you come down to the lake with me? There’s something I want to show you?” Goku’s voice was tentative. It had seemed like a good idea at the time, but now he was afraid his meager attempts would seem foolish or disrespectful.

“What’s up, kid?” Gojyo asked.

“It’s…umm…a surprise. Can you just come with me?” Goku persisted.

Gojyo and Hakkai exchanged a curious look with one another but rose to their feet and started to walk to the lake. When Goku looked down at Sanzo, he saw that the priest was awake and staring at him intently.

“Please?” Goku asked.

With a small chuffing sound, Sanzo stood up and grabbed a clean pair of jeans to wear for the walk.

Goku caught up to Hakkai and Gojyo just as the pair came into view of his project. With the dozen small votives lit and placed all around and on the boulders, it was easy to tell just what it was that Goku wanted them to see. He stood a little apart from the two men and watched for a reaction.

Gojyo and Hakkai stood in stunned amazement at the sight in front of them. The rocks formed a natural niche and ledge and Goku had rigged a makeshift shrine on them.

A small wooden plaque leaned again the largest rock from the back of the ledge. There were three names carved on it: Sha, Cho, and Koumyou. At the bottom right hand corner there was something additional but from this distance neither man could make out what it was.

In a small crevice off to one side was a folded paper cone that had been wedged into place. There was a small bouquet of wildflowers, obviously local and recently picked. They were hastily obtained but had been carefully arranged.

In the center of the rock shelf, there was a small plate holding an apple, an orange, a banana, and, balanced on top of the fruit, there was a three day old meat bun. The small white roll looked a little dried out, but was otherwise in pristine condition.

Goku watched as first Gojyo and then Hakkai moved forward and knelt in front of the makeshift ‘family’ marker. He breathed a little sigh of relief at the acceptance of his gesture and so missed the fact that Sanzo had walked up and was currently standing directly behind him.

Feeling the heat of his lover’s body against his back, Goku jumped and turned his head to look up at the priest. Hakkai and Gojyo were one thing, but how would Genjo Sanzo react to what he’d done?

Sanzo’s eyes flicked back and forth between Goku, the candlelit shrine, and his two friends paying their respects to their dead. Off to one side of the boulders, Sanzo spotted two small toy boats. They were nothing fancy, just a pair of canoe-like boats and Sanzo realized that Goku had gotten them to float the candles over the lake when they were done.

Sanzo stepped around Goku and stood in front of him. Reaching into the pocket of his jeans, he pulled out his pack of cigarettes, placed one between his lips and then held out his hand.

Goku stared back at the priest for a moment before realizing that he still had Sanzo’s lighter. With a small blush, he reached into his own pocket, pulled out the ‘borrowed’ lighter and handed it over to his lover.

When Sanzo reached for the lighter, he let his hand linger over Goku’s for a moment before retreating with the item. He turned then and walked over to the front of the memorial. Standing between Hakkai and Gojyo where they knelt on the ground, he flicked the lighter and took a single drag off of the cigarette before placing it along the front edge of the rock shelf. Twice more he pulled cigarettes out of the pack and repeated the action before kneeling between his friends, putting his hands together palm to palm, and closing his eyes.

Hakkai watched Sanzo out of the corner of his eye and gave a small smile at his friend’s actions. Turning around, Hakkai motioned for Goku to join them and made a little space between himself and the priest. When Hakkai had gotten close enough to the little wooden plaque, he’d been able to identify the markings in the lower right hand corner.

Looking like a doodle and perhaps done as an afterthought or even unconsciously, Goku had added a small bird to the bottom of the memorial. They didn’t know much of the particulars of Goku’s years before they all met, but everyone has something that they mourn and Goku had as much right as anyone to be here.

One by one, each of the men stood and moved away from makeshift shrine. When they were ready, Goku picked up the boats and let each of them put a candle on the flat surface before pushing them across the surface of the lake. The tiny candles bobbed on their wooden platform as they moved further and further away. It was a quiet moment full of peace and serenity.

As Sanzo watched the lights grow dim in the distance, he realized just how much the group had needed this and turned back to face Goku. Thank you was a difficult thing for the priest to say, so instead he reached out and cupped Goku’s cheek before leaning down for a kiss.

Hakkai and Gojyo waited for the two men to separate before offering their thanks and moving back towards the camp. Gojyo found himself craving contact after that moment by the lake and reached out tentatively to try to hold Hakkai’s hand. The hand was cold to the touch, but the fingers grasped his back tightly and held on. Neither man wanted to be alone right now and they went back to their open air bedroom to enjoy a little privacy until the other two returned.

Sanzo waited until he heard Hakkai and Gojyo rustle through the bushes near the camp and then pushed Goku backwards up against one of the tall rocks. Leaning forward and with his hands to either side of Goku’s head, he bent down for another kiss. More passionate than his first, Sanzo pushed his tongue into Goku’s mouth and pushed their bodies together.

Gasping for air, Goku threw his head back and offered his throat to Sanzo’s mouth. He could see the moon in front of his eyes, but it was the feeling of Sanzo that captured all of his attention. Between kisses, licks, and nips, Goku heard a very soft ‘thank you’ come from Sanzo.

Goku’s eyes slowly closed and a smile spread over his enraptured face. Sanzo’s voice would call a name again this evening, but this time the only name Goku heard would be his own.

**Author's Note:**

> For those of you unfamiliar with Bon season. It's a Japanese traditional holiday that is a bit like American Thanksgiving, Memorial Day, and Christian All Saints day rolled up into one. It is a season rather than a day and is observed in various areas of the country from July to August. It is a time for families to be together, celebrate the family, and remember loved ones who have gone before and are watching over them.


End file.
